ALLENDALE, Mich. — Grand Valley State University is tightening its visitor and guest policy following a series of incidents in September, including car break-ins, a peeping Tom arrest, and a fight involving weapons.
WATCH: GVSU students react to new campus visitor restrictions
The new restrictions take effect Oct. 8 and will limit who can enter campus during certain overnight hours.
On Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, anyone driving onto campus between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. must enter through the Arch entrance on Campus Drive. Campus security will check ID's and confirm the reason for their visit.
Access will be limited to approved individuals, including students, faculty, staff and pre-registered guests. You can find the full list here.
GVSU Vice President for Student Affairs Jenny Hall-Jones said the changes come after several recent incidents involving people who were not affiliated with the university.
“We've had a couple of incidents that have happened in the middle of the night on the weekends and a lot of those incidents have been nonstudents or guest students,” Hall-Jones said. “So basically what we’re doing is just enforcing the rules that we already have.”
Hall-Jones said the university hopes the changes will help restore the atmosphere students expect on campus.
“I just want everyone to get back to the Grand Valley feel,” Hall-Jones said.
Students react to new safety restrictions
Some GVSU students say they understand why the university is making the changes, especially following the recent incidents.
“There's been a lot of events that could spark something like this,” said Rionna Garino, a GVSU sophomore.
GVSU freshman Blake Foster said it’s frustrating that people who don’t attend GVSU are contributing to incidents that affect the students who live there.
“These guys get to go home and sleep in their beds, we still have to be here and wake up for class the next morning with the new rules and the new expectations,” Foster said. “It’s unfortunate but it’s what’s necessary to have a safe and engaging campus life.”
While students say they support efforts to improve campus safety, some are concerned the new procedures could cause delays when entering campus.
“If they have to check everybody, it might take longer,” said GVSU freshman Amelia Carnes.
The new policy requires students to register any guests before they arrive on campus. Guests must be registered by 5 p.m. the day before their visit.
Carnes had a guest visiting campus Thursday night and said the form only took a few minutes to complete.
“I’m a little bit curious what it’s going to look like," Carnes said.
While students are still adjusting to the new process, Carnes said she believes the changes are necessary.
“I think it’s a good thing considering all that’s been happening on campus,” she said.
Foster agreed, saying student safety should remain the university's priority.
“What's most important is student safety,” he said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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